A Dominant UNP Cabinet OF Ministers - By New Year

The stage is now set for a dominant UNP cabinet, as the 16 Sri Lanka Freedom Party (SLFP) Parliamentarians have decided to sit in the opposition.

“Asian Tribune,” learnt that the Secretaries to the President and Prime Minister, are working together to restructure the new cabinet of ministries.

“Asian Tribune,” also learnt that the main ministries dealing with economic affairs, as well as development, presently held by UNP stalwarts too would be reassigned to veterans who are considered experts on those subjects, such as finance, economic development, economic and international affairs.

A new cabinet under the theme of ‘One Leader, One Program and One Government, ’ will be sworn in by April 14, Co-cabinet spokesperson Minister Rajitha Senaratne said yesterday.

Addressing the weekly cabinet media briefing at the Government Information Department, the Minister explained that some ministries would be restructured in a scientific manner but it would be difficult to do so for all.

The main changes in cabinet however would take place in the portfolios currently held by the six SLFP ministers who voted against the Prime Minister at the recently held No-Confidence Motion (NCM), added the Minister.

The sixteen SLFP ministers who voted for the no-confidence motion against the prime minister decided to resign from their posts yesterday night and sit in the opposition benches, but will support President Sirisena, when Parliament meets after the New Year celebrations.

The 25 SLFP Ministers and MPs, who had abstained from voting on the NCM, it is learnt will however continue to support President Sirisena and serve in the Council of Minister if appointed to it in the reshuffle which is due in the next couple of days.

Co-cabinet spokesperson Minister Rajitha Senaratne said yesterday that the President had informed them that the six SLFP ministers had decided to leave cabinet and that their posts would be filled with six other SLFPers to form a new cabinet.

“Our stance has been that those who voted against the Prime Minister, cannot continue to remain in the cabinet”, said Minister Rajitha Senaratne .

In the meantime, 20 UNP backbenchers have already submitted to the Speaker of the Parliament, seven separate no-confidence motions against the six SLFP Ministers who voted in favor of the no-confidence motion on the 4th of April and also one against the Deputy Speaker Thilanga Sumathipala.

Anyhow, Prime Minister Ranil Wickremasinghe has instructed his party men to withdraw those no-confidence motions filed against the SLFPers, citing it as not the decision of the UNP.